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Ever heard the phrase, “the early bird gets the worm?”
That’s certainly the case here! You will find that there are many requirements
you must fulfill to be eligible to transfer to a University of California (UC)
campus. The UC’s requirements differ depending on a variety of
factors — whether you are on a semester or quarter system at your community
college, which major you are pursuing, and which course pattern or plan you
choose to follow. Below are five tips to consider when beginning the process
of transferring to a UC:

Tip No. 1: Meet With Your Academic Advisor... Early and
Often!

Transferring to a UC can be confusing, so it’s important to
connect with your academic advisor as soon as you enroll at your local
community college. Your academic advisor can help you with course selection
before you register for classes. They can also assist with exploring major or
minor options, transfer requirements and graduation requirements. At many
community colleges, your academic advisor can also help connect you with career
and internship program resources.The earlier you meet with your academic advisor the sooner
you can get on track to transfer. Remember, your community college advisor is
an expert in helping students transfer to a UC. If he or she doesn’t know an
answer, reach out to UC staff by calling the school’s admissions office.

Tip No. 2: Use Available Resources

UC provides community college students with an online tool
called the UC Transfer Admission Planner (TAP). By using TAP, students can
track their progress in community college coursework to learn if they are
meeting UC requirements. Ideally, you should meet with your academic advisor
and begin filling in your Transfer Admission Planner before starting your first
semester or quarter of classes at your community college. If you don’t start
planning early, you might take the wrong classes and put yourself in jeopardy
of not finishing within two years. Note that UC staff will also use the TAP
site to communicate information to prospective students.In addition, UC has compiled its most popular 10 majors that
students transfer into and created a roadmap called Transfer Pathways. You can
utilize Transfer Pathways to easily determine the exact courses to take if you
want to be eligible for that major at any UC. Some UCs may expect fewer
courses, but no UC will expect more courses than the courses they list. Make
sure to maintain strong grades in these courses if you plan to major in that
subject area. Finally, the Intersegmental General Education Transfer
Curriculum (IGETC) is a curriculum plan for students looking to transfer to a
UC. Students who follow IGETC meet freshmen and sophomore general education
requirements before they transfer.

Tip No. 3: Satisfy the Minimum Requirements

UC gives California community college students first
priority over other transfer applicants, and many campuses offer guaranteed
admission to students who meet their well-documented prerequisites.
Understanding the minimum transfer requirements in advance will help make the transfer
process go as smoothly as possible.There is a 7-course pattern of classes you must take by the
end of the spring term prior to fall enrollment at a UC. You must also complete
at least 60 semester (90 quarter) units of UC-transferable credit. No more than
14 semester (21 quarter) units of the 60 semester (90 quarter) units may be
taken pass/fail or credit/no credit. You must earn at least a 2.4 GPA in
UC-transferable courses (2.8 if you’re a nonresident). Some majors require a
higher GPA for admission selection.

Tip No. 4: Keep Track of Your Courses

The most important thing you can do to boost your chances of
transferring to a UC in two years is to diligently track which courses you are
taking throughout your time at a community college. We recommend using ASSIST,
which helps find community college courses that are transferable to a UC or CSU
campus, and shows how those transferable courses might be used to satisfy
subject matter requirements for specific majors or general education
requirements.You should look into the UC majors you are considering and
see what their prerequisites are. For example, to get into the Media Studies
major at UC Berkeley, you need to take an introductory Political Science class.
This is a class that can be taken at your community college-and it will fulfill
a general education requirement. You might also find there are some classes
that you can ONLY take at the UC. This frees up space in your community college
schedule to fulfill other general education requirements, or to boost your
resume and improve your skills by taking college writing or foreign language
classes.

Tip No. 5: Research the UC Transfer Admission Guarantee

The UC Transfer Admission Guarantee (TAG) allows students to
apply for the TAG program using the Transfer Admissions Planner (TAP). Once you
apply, your academic records will be reviewed. If you are admitted into a TAG
program, you are guaranteed admission into a UC program! You still need to
apply to the UC system using the standard UC application, but when you are
officially accepted, you will receive an early admission notification and guidance
about major preparation.It is crucial that you read the TAG Matrix. Each
participating UC has specific requirements you must fulfill to be considered
for TAG. The TAG Matrix and the TAG application deadline may change every year,
so it’s key that you do your research and meet with your community college
advisor often.

Final Thoughts

There are 2.1 million students in the California community
college system — and according to the UC, nearly one in three UC students will
start at a community college before graduating from a UC campus. Arm yourself
with the necessary tools to make the transfer process as seamless as possible,
ask for help when needed, and don’t be afraid to let yourself stand out.

The University of California website says it best: “If
you’re at a California community college, your journey to UC has already
begun.”

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